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Page 339
arable. Ian cursed John under his breath. He had no way of knowing which challenges were bribes. Had he known, he would have taken as good care as he could not to unseat an honest challenger. An inconclusive result on the field would leave the case open for settlement in the courts, where such cases belonged.
Alinor watched the pass with smiling approval.
"A well-placed stroke," the king said to her.
"Yes, my lord," Alinor replied gravely, her eyes demurely lowered so that John would not see the amusement in them. "It could not be otherwise, for he was trained and practiced by my late husband, Sir Simon who, as you know, was one of the great jousters of his day. Until Simon fell ill, he and Ian spent hours each day jousting. You remember, I believe, that Simon was as great a master of the tourney field as Lord Pembroke. Of course, Ian is too thin to be as fine a jouster as Simon, but"
"I do not like it," Lady Ela whined. "I do not like the way the dust is starting to rise. Just look. If the wind shifts, it will blow upon us. It is very bad for me to breathe dust. It causes a catch in my throat."
Alinor turned to her other neighbor. "It seems to be settling very fast," she soothed. "If it should drift this way, you can cover your nose and mouth with a veil, and I will fan the air away."
The ridiculous interruption was very apt. Alinor was reminded that King John was not the right person upon whom to exercise her teasing wit. She had said enough to prepare the king for Ian's continued success so that he would not be betrayed by temper into displaying his peculiar displeasure at his champion's triumphs. At the immediate moment, it had also given John time to reconsider his next remark. In view of all the attentive ears so close around him, the king said something quite unexceptional about how fortunate they were in the mild weather. By then, Sir William had been helped

 
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